Guitar Interactive – Issue 66 2019

(^98) Guitar Interactive Issue 66
Danelectro The Eisenhower Fuzz Pedal
Danelectro has combined over the top fuzz with a super hot octave effect with The Eisenhower Fuzz Pedal. Rich harmonics with super “out front”
octave. Plus, sculpt setting scoops mids and boosts bass for that outrageous “in your face” tone. Nick Jennison tells us more.
REVIEWS_PEDAL REVIEW THE REVIEWS^ DANELECTRO THE EISENHOWER FUZZ PEDAL
like me, you grew up playing
guitar in mid-90s and early 2000s,
Danelectro pedals will likely hold a special
place in your heart. Their kooky “food” series
of pedals, with their 50s-inspired plastic
enclosures and tiny price tags, were the first
pedals many of us got our hands-on. They
may have been cheap as chips (pardon the
pun) and prone to falling apart underfoot,
but they sounded surprisingly good!
Fast forward to 2019, and Danelectro are still
making great-sounding pedals with unique
retro aesthetics, but with the kind of build
quality that could withstand half a century
of use and abuse. Which is exactly how the
new “Eisenhower Fuzz” looks: like it’s been
kicked around on stages for fifty years.
Putting our opinions on relic gear aside for
a moment, the Eisenhower is an octave-up
fuzz pedal that takes it’s inspiration from the
Univox/Shin-Ei Super Fuzz. Compared to
the Roger Mayer Octavia, the Super Fuzz is
significantly fatter and thicker sounding, and
the octave up effect is a little more subtle.
It’s still very reactive to your guitar’s pickup
selector and tone controls, with darker
settings producing a more pronounced
“octave” effect, while brighter guitar sounds
will yield more of a “textural” effect with a
“tearing velcro” quality that I just adore.
There’s a pretty huge amount of gain in the
Eisenhower that goes way beyond “vintage”
levels of fuzz, but the texture and grind are
so good that even the most extreme gain
settings sound rich and full of character.
Lower gain tones, by contrast, will work
beautifully with a broken up amp, or feeding
another pedal.
Speaking of working with amps, the tone
sculpting features on the Eisenhower are
extremely comprehensive. The “Flat/Sculpt”
switch will take the tone from a very mid-
heavy, vocal sound to a mid-scooped and
aggressive tone reminiscent of those classic
90s muff tones. This switch is also ideal
for matching the Eisenhower to your amp
of choice. Scooped-sounding clean Fender
amps will benefit from the midrange warmth
of the “Flat” setting, while a more nasal
Marshall or Orange clean channel is perfect
for warming up the skinnier “Sculpt” setting.
Similarly, running the “Flat” setting into a
breaking up amp will keep things punchy
and clear in a band mix. The treble and bass
controls have a lot of range, so finding a
“sweet spot” is very easy. »
IF